


stop all the clocks

by shoelaces



Category: Virals Series - Kathy Reichs
Genre: Background Tory Brennan/Ben Blue, Implied/Referenced Sexual Assault, Kidnapping, M/M, Shootings, Time Travel, What am I doing, life is strange au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-07
Updated: 2018-11-07
Packaged: 2019-08-20 05:17:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16549640
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shoelaces/pseuds/shoelaces
Summary: Shelton learns he has the power to rewind time when he saves Hi from death. As he struggles to understand what's going on, a conspiracy starts to unravel in Charleston that threatens to destroy everything.





	stop all the clocks

**Author's Note:**

> umm i started this two years ago and have been periodically writing on and off and finally decided to bite the bullet and upload chapter 1. enjoy, you tiny fandom!

_ Butterfly Effect:  _ _ The scientific theory that a single occurrence, no matter how small, can change the course of the universe forever. _

 

Shelton feels the rain before he hears the storm. He is lying face down in waterlogged soil, forehead resting on the sleeves of a soaked raincoat that feels too big for him. As he pushes himself into a sitting position, he realises with a jolt that he is collapsed at the bottom of the path to the old lighthouse.

 

In the middle of what looks like the biggest tornado he’s ever seen.

 

_ What the hell? _

 

The lighthouse is the best course of action, he decides. From what he can see through his rain-spattered glasses, it is out of the course of the tornado heading straight for downtown Charleston. It must have already ripped through the houses on Morris.

 

_ No. _

 

Horrified, he stumbles back, hand over his mouth. He has no idea how he’d even ended up here, no memory of what had happened at all. The rain beats down, and his head feels ready to split. Shelton turns towards the lighthouse, trying to think of a way to get up the hill. Before he can make any move, there is an almighty crash, and the beacon hurtles towards him at full speed. He holds out his hands in a pathetic defense and- 

 

“Crap!” He jerks his head back and suddenly he is sitting in his photography classroom, sunlight spilling through the windows. Mr Douglas, in the middle of a lecture, hasn’t noticed his display, and continues. 

 

“Photography has, in the past, been referred to as little pieces of time.” He leans on his desk and looks across the room. Ashley answers a text. Charlie throws a paper aeroplane at his best friend Luke. It misses, hitting Courtney instead. The boys all choke back laughter as she huffs. Shelton just bows his head, praying not to be asked a question. Super wolf powers or not, social anxiety is still crippling. None of the other Virals chose to take Photography, and he’s ended up in a class mostly filled with assholes who thought Photography would be easy. With their trust funds, they wouldn’t need to worry about grades anyway. It may have given him an edge with their teacher, but he is a regular victim in the classroom. In front of him, Madison is giving him a curious look. She must have heard him freak out. Shelton has to admit, she has a gift for Photography, and all the newest equipment.  _ Not fair _ . 

 

His heart's still racing. It can’t have been more than a nightmare, but it felt so real, and he’s never fallen asleep in class before. He slips his phone from his pocket and snaps a picture of his face as a reminder that he is still in his classroom, not about to be crushed by a lighthouse in the middle of a hurricane.

 

“Ah, Shelton, now that you’ve caught my attention,” Mr Douglas gestures to him. Crap. “Let’s see if you’ve been listening.” He says this with a smile, clearly confident that Shelton has been hanging on to his every word. He usually does. Mr Douglas is a world famous photographer, and started teaching at Bolton Prep the year before. Hi regularly teases Shelton about being in love with him. “What is the name of the contrast between light and dark in photography?”

 

Shelton knows he knows the answer, but he’s far too shaken to search his brain for it. Feeling bad, he just responds weakly, “I did know. I forgot.” He trails off, hoping his usual enthusiasm makes up for it.

 

Ashley cuts in instantly. “Chiaroscuro,” she says with a flawless smile. “First confirmed in da Vinci’s late 15th century paintings, though it could have been used earlier than that.” She’s flirting with him.

 

_ Oh come on,  _ he thinks to himself as Mr Douglas congratulates her. Ashley pulls an exaggerated sad face at him. It’s only first period on a Monday. Today is going to get worse before it gets better, and if Tory suggests a break-in, he might actually cry. He’s not sure where they would be breaking in, but the Virals are certainly due a felony. 

 

The sound of the bell jerks him out of his reverie. He slides his camera and notebook into his bag and hurries for the door, hoping he can get out before anyone says anything to him.

 

No such luck. Just as he makes it to the door, Mr Douglas calls, “Shelton, we need to talk about your entry in the Everyday Heroes contest.”

 

“I’ll have something soon,’ he promises. ‘It’s hard to find the right photo.” Over Mr Douglas’s shoulder, he raises an eyebrow at Sara who has stayed in her seat. She smiles back, sympathetic but a little half-hearted.

 

“Well, I do hope you enter. You have a gift, Shelton, and San Francisco could be a real opportunity for you. John Lennon once said, ‘Life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans’.” It’s completely corny. Is he living in a soap now?

 

“Okay, Sir. I’ll have something soon.” He starts to edge towards the door.

 

“See that you do, Shelton.” Mr Douglas smiles, and relieved, Shelton steps into the corridor, leaving Sara behind to discuss whatever she was there for. The corridors are crowded with people, most of them on a free period like him. He can’t see Tory or Hi, but Ella, leaning against a locker, smiles at him and waves. Shelton likes Ella a lot, and would normally go over to talk to her (his inability to talk to girls has faded recently), but right now he needs to get to the bathroom and calm down.

 

The bathroom in the art block is thankfully as empty as always. They’re far away from all of the classrooms and barely functioning. He leans against the sink and takes a deep breath, staring at his reflection in the mirror.  _  You’re okay,  _ he thinks to himself.  _ You’re here, it was just a bad dream. _ When he looks up from splashing water on his face, a luminous blue butterfly has fluttered in through the vents and landed on a bucket in the corner behind the stalls.

 

_ Photo op. _

 

Shelton slides his camera from his bag and crouches beside the bucket and snaps a picture. Satisfied, he turns to leave when he hears heavy breathing as someone comes in. The boy is muttering unintelligibly to himself, and Shelton strains to understand him without revealing himself. Whoever the voice belongs to, they’re not here on a bathroom break. Even with his expert hearing, he can only pick up a few words.

 

_ “Don’t freak…own this school...no danger” _

 

Shelton edges slightly round the corner to see who the voice belongs to. Leaning over the sink is Max Watson, the popular asshole who’d taken over the role of richest kid in school since Chance left. He is tall and skinny, with a shock of pale blond hair.

 

And there’s a gun in his jacket pocket.

 

Terrified, Shelton flattens himself against the wall of the stall, not trusting himself to move. Max has been violent before, and in the state he’s in,  Shelton reckons he’d be toast if he revealed himself. Max continues muttering to himself.

 

_ “Never wanted to...Lucy...not my fault” _

 

Before he can attempt to decode what he just heard, the door swings open again.  _  Get out,  _ Shelton prays.  _ He has a gun.   _

 

“Are you taking drugs in here?” Shelton swears he feels his heart drop to his feet.  It’s Hiram speaking. 

 

“Get out of here!” Max is speaking clearly now, shouting. “Go!” Shelton clamps a hand over his mouth to stop himself from crying out.  _ Come on, Hi, just run. God, why does he always have to talk?   _ He hears feet moving as Hi starts for the door. “Hey, wait.” Max says. Shelton is trying desperately to connect to Hi, to warn him about the gun, but he’s shut him out. Hi always does during classes. “You’re that kid who’s always snooping around. You messed with Chance’s head.”

“We didn’t do anything to Chance. He had a breakdown. Just let me go, okay?” Hi’s voice has lost its usual humour. He sounds worried. 

 

“Don’t EVER tell me what to do!” Max yells.

 

“Whoa! Where did you get that? Put that thing down!”

 

_ Crap. The gun.  _ Shelton is really panicking now, desperately trying to think of what to do. “I’m so SICK of people trying to control me!”

 

“You are gonna get in way more trouble for this than drugs.” Hi’s voice is shaking. As many guns as he and Shelton have been threatened with before, they’re now completely alone and Hi is the sole target. “Just put it down, okay? I’m not going to rat you out.”  _ Lie _ .

 

“Liar! You can’t keep your mouth shut about anything! Nobody would ever even miss your fat ass, would they?”

 

“Get that gun away from me, asshole!”

 

_ Crack. _

 

In a moment of sheer blind panic where all he knows is that Hiram  _ cannot  _ die here, Shelton flies out from his hiding place with a scream of “ _ No! _ ” He throws his hand out as if he can somehow stop the horror occurring in front of him, as Hi starts to fall, blood blooming from his chest, so much blood.

 

The next few moments happen in slow motion. Max drops the gun just as Hi hits the ground. Shelton can already tell he’s dying. 

 

Then suddenly, the whole world is ripped away from him in flashes of pink and yellow and he’s at in his seat in his photography classroom again. “Photography has, in the past, been referred to as little pieces of time.” Mr Douglas leans over his desk, observing the class. Madison gives him a curious look. Ashley’s phone buzzes, and she starts writing a text.

 

_ If Charlie throws a paper aeroplane… _

 

A paper aeroplane flies across the room, missing Luke and hitting Courtney. Laughter. Shelton nearly knocks his camera off the desk.

 

There’s no way he dreamt what just happened. It was too vivid, too real. He’s already heard this lecture.  _ Retrace every step.  _ When he took a selfie on his phone. Douglas asked him a question. Hands shaking, he snaps a picture again. “Ah, Shelton,” his teacher says. “Now that you’ve caught my attention, let’s see if you’ve been listening. What is the name of the contrast between light and dark in photography?”

 

“I need to go to the bathroom,” he blurts out. “I don’t feel well.”

 

“Just wait. Class is over in a few minutes.” Mr Douglas looks disappointed before Ashley interrupts and reels off her flawless answer. It’s then that Shelton remembers how he’d held up his hand, and the flashes of pink and yellow. It’s like he reversed time.

 

_ Well, if I’m crazy anyway,  _ he thinks to himself, and holds out his hand, concentrating on the idea of reversing time. “...name of the contrast between light and dark in photography?”

 

For a few seconds, he just stares. Utterly shocked. Then, remembering where he is, he answers, “Chiaroscuro. First confirmed use in da Vinci’s late 15th century paintings, but it could have been used as early as ancient Greek and Roman times.”

 

“Excellent, Shelton!” Mr Douglas misses his incredulous expression. Ashley is frowning now, looking confused. He has just voiced her exact thoughts. “Chiaroscuro is a favourite technique of mine.” Mr Douglas continues. “Shadows and light can bring out all sorts of aspects that a person usually hides in their expressions. I could take any one of you, frame you in shadows and show your true colours.” The bell sounds again. Trembling, Shelton gets to his feet. This is real. He rewound time. 

 

_ Hiram. _

 

He needs to leg it to the bathroom and figure out what to do.  If he can really rewind time, then he can stop Hi from getting shot. Failing that doesn’t bear thinking about.  “Shelton, we need to talk about your entry for the Everyday Heroes contest.”

 

_ Crap.  _ He wracks his brain to think of what Mr Douglas had told him before and then says, “I’ll have my picture for you tomorrow. John Lennon once said that ‘life is what happens when you’re busy making other plans’. I’m on top of it.”

 

“Well, that was easy,” Mr Douglas looks surprised. “Good answer, Shelton.” 

 

Sara smiles from her seat, but doesn’t look up this time.

 

“Thanks.” He bolts for the door, nearly running straight into Madison. 

 

She clearly wants to say something to him, but looks a little uncomfortable. Despite her friendship with Tory, Shelton has never had a proper conversation with her, and it’s blatantly obvious that neither of them know what to say. “You okay, Shelton? You look freaked out and Tory said-”

 

“Fine.” He answers quickly, and slides past her out of the door. He can worry about offending her later.

 

In the corridor, he ignores Ella, and doesn’t pause to look at anything. He can’t afford to lose any time at all. The bathroom is empty.  _ Small triumph,  _ he thinks.  _ Today has been awful.   _ He must have lost some time in the classroom because the butterfly flits through the vent almost immediately. Afraid of some sort of hideous butterfly effect (literally), he takes the picture again. 

 

Just like the last time, as Shelton draws back, Max bursts into the bathroom, and talks to himself at the sink. He catches a few more words this time.

 

_ “High...brother...caught”.  _ Something weird is going on here. Shelton thinks that this can’t just be about drugs. Something big enough that Max pulled a gun on Hi.

 

He needs to figure out a plan. He can’t ambush Max, that would be right up there on the list of stupidest things he’s done. This is Hi, though. His best friend in the world since forever. He’s not going to let him down here. 

 

The door creaks and Hi walks in again. Shelton prays something will change, that he won’t speak, or he’ll just leave straight away. “Are you taking drugs in here?” Hi is staying very much on script.

 

“Get out of here! Go!” Shelton doesn’t listen to the conversation after this, but nothing new catches his attention. He scans the room desperately for something he can use, pushing all his advantages to the limit. His eyes must be blazing blue, but there’s no point worrying about that.

 

“I’m not going to rat you out!” He doesn’t have much time. His eyes catch the fire alarm.  _ Yes.  _ He edges silently towards it, praying his shoes don’t squeak on the tiles. 

 

_ Crack. _

 

There’s a thump, and then he hears Max whispering ‘Shit! Oh no no no!’ 

 

Too late again. 

 

He holds out his hand, concentrates.  _ Please please work again.  _ Lights flash behind his eyelids and pain builds in his head. Wincing, he lowers his arm. 

 

“...would they?”

 

Thankfully, Shelton himself hasn’t moved. He is still right by the fire alarm and smashes straight through the glass.  _ Ouch. No wonder you’re supposed to use the hammer.  _

 

The high pitched wail starts instantly. Shelton darts back to just behind the stall to watch what happens next. “What the hell?” Max looks up, distracted and Hi uses this moment to knock the gun from his hands and towards the door. He picks it up and bolts. Hi collapses against the sink, pale. Trembling, Shelton steps out from his hiding place. Hi jumps at the sound, then his face softens. “Woah, Shelton. Were you in here the whole time?”

 

“I pulled the fire alarm.’ Shelton stares at his feet. Today has all been a bit much and he really needs to sleep. ‘He was going to shoot you.”

 

“You smashed that glass with your hands?” Hi grabs Shelton’s wrist. “Dude, you’re a superhero! You saved my life!”

 

“Hiram, um, someth-” Before Shelton can start to respond, Mr Douglas coughs from the doorway. 

 

‘Excuse me, boys, but the fire alarm means everyone needs to go outside. What are you two still doing in here?’

 

Hi opens his mouth, definitely ready with some sort of nonsense excuse, but Shelton, aware of the rambling about to occur, cuts in. “Sir, Max Watson was just in here with a gun!”

 

“Shelton, that is a very serious accusatio-”

 

“I’m telling the truth!” His hands are shaking so badly it must look ridiculously suspicious, but Hi is standing by him and nodding like a bobblehead. Explaining how Hi had nearly died seems far too complicated right now, so he doesn’t elaborate. “Fine, boys. I’ll talk to him and the principal. Now go outside.” 

 

“Shouldn’t we have to give a statement or call the police or something?”

 

“Later. Now go outside.” Glad, but slightly confused, Shelton nods. No further argument. He and Hi scuttle for the doors, and Shelton breathes as the fresh air hits his face.

 

“We can never catch a break, can we?” Hi groans next to him. ‘That came out of nowhere! Thank God you were in there, or I’d be toast right now.”

 

“Don’t say that.” Shelton says quietly. This is still way too much to get his head around. 

 

Hi frowns. “You okay? I know I still look hot, but you’re sweating like you ran a marathon. Too much action?”

 

“Yeah. You could say that.” Shelton replies distractedly. 

 

“Could Max Watson please report to the Principal’s office now?” The tannoy goes off, and several people look up momentarily before going back to whatever they’re doing. It’s no big deal to any of them. Looking for something to do, Shelton fiddles with his phone. Tory has texted him at some point after he’d left the bathroom.

 

**Tor: Madison says you freaked in Photography you ok?? :(**

**Shelton: felt sick! Talk later??**

 

It’s not technically a lie. He really had felt sick to his stomach when he wound up back in the classroom, but the reason is certainly not whatever Madison has been guessing. He’s still feeling out of it, but he leaves his anxiety medication at home these days, so there’s not much he can do. 

 

**Tor: you ok now?? Might be a bit late. meet at the shuttle?**

**Shelton: fine and dandy :)**

 

“Are we gonna tell her what just happened? She’ll be pissed. And she’ll tell Ben. Max will have nightmares for the rest of his life.” Hi squints at Shelton’s phone. 

 

“Maybe. I don’t want to get involved in any justice plots. I have too much homework.” 

 

“I don’t understand why he freaked out so quickly. I barely said anything and he got so  _ angry.  _ Probably shouldn’t have opened my big mouth, but still.”

 

“I think something’s wrong.” Shelton drops onto the bench beside Hi. “He was really out of it. Not high.”

 

Hi isn’t listening. He’s caught sight of someone behind them. “It’s Sara!” For someone who nearly lost his life minutes ago, Hi seems remarkably cheerful. Shelton knows he’s just overcompensating because he can see his hands shaking, but he lets it slide. Hi doesn’t talk about these things, so he doesn’t ask. It’s an unspoken rule. “Maybe she’s actually going to ask you out this time!”

 

Shelton sighs. Sara is incredibly sweet, and quite pretty, he supposes, with a crush on him that he doesn’t entirely know how to deal with. She’s mercilessly picked on, especially in their Photography class. Her father had been arrested for fraud, and Bolton Prep was not the kind of school where gossip like that went unmentioned. 

 

Sara, however, brushes straight past them. Her dark brown curls are up in a tight ponytail that swings behind her as she hurries away. She is wringing her hands anxiously. Hi frowns. “What’s up with her?”

 

“Stay here. She might talk to me.” Shelton hurries after her, an idea already forming in his head. She’s already out of sight. Making sure that no one is looking, he holds out his hand. The world spins around him (that’s always going to make him feel a bit sick) and then Sara is right in front of him, where she had been moments ago. He reaches out and touches her arm gently. “Hey, Sara. Everything okay?”

 

There is a long pause where she looks genuinely shocked. Then her face crumples, and she shakes her head, half sitting and half falling onto the bench closest to them. Awkwardly, Shelton takes a seat next to her. “I don’t know what to do,” Sara whispers. “I tried to talk to the Principal, but he didn’t care.”

 

“About what? What are you talking about?”

 

She sighs shakily, using the sleeve of her blazer to wipe her face. “I went to one of those parties on Saturday. I don’t know why I was invited, but I was. It was at Ashley’s house, near mine, so I figured I could just leave if it got bad.”

 

“Bad?”

 

“I didn’t want to get drunk or anything. I don’t like that stuff.”

 

“Fair enough.” Shelton pulls his sleeves over his hands so he doesn’t fiddle with his earlobe. Everyone knows this tic of his, and Sara doesn’t need to know how on edge he is already today. “What happened?”

 

“I don’t know! Max got me a soda, I think. Then I felt really sick, so he said he’d take me home.”

 

Shelton is starting to piece what Sara is saying together. “Did he...”

 

“No. No, I don’t think so. I didn’t see him after he said that. I woke up in this room, and it was so bright. I thought it was the hospital, and someone was talking to me and there were all these clicking noises. Then I blacked out again and someone woke me up back at the party a few hours later.” She reels off this story perfectly, as if she’s been practicing it in her head all week. “I told the Principal, but he said I must have imagined it, because I didn’t have any proof.”

 

“That’s sick.” He means it. Sara is telling the truth, he can tell, and she’s utterly distraught. “Sara, I really don’t know what to-”

 

“Help me.” Sara looks up suddenly, staring straight at him with huge dark eyes. “You’ve done so many things, Shelton. There was all that stuff with the Gamemaster guy and whatever happened with Chance. I want you to find out what happened.”

 

Despite everything he’d thought about taking a break from the drama, Shelton nods. Today alone, he’s had a crazy dream about a tornado, saved his best friend from getting shot by rewinding time, and heard far more of Max Watson than he ever wanted to. “I’ll do what I can,” he promises. “Someone must know something.”

 

She smiles shakily. “You’re so sweet, Shelton. You should probably go back to Hiram now. He’ll be missing you.” There’s an odd look on her face at this statement. Shelton can’t quite figure it out. “You can tell him, if you want. No one else, though.”

 

“Okay. Are you going to be alright?”

 

She shrugs. “I’ll be fine.”

 

Reluctantly, Shelton leaves to find Hi, who is getting uncharacteristically antsy. He jumps up when he sees Shelton crossing over towards him, and grabs his arm. “Thank God you’re back. I thought I was gonna have to start doing work or something. Come on, we’re going to the cafe.”

 

“We’re missing class?”

 

“Only if we’re not back in time. We need to talk about what just happened, and you need to buy some plasters.”

 

Shelton glances at his hand. He hadn’t noticed the cuts where he’d smashed through the alarm. He tucks his hand into his pocket. “It’s really not that bad.  You could have had a bullet in you.” The statement makes him wince as soon as he says it. Shelton saw Hi get shot, and it’s not something he’s ever going to forget, even standing next to him right now. He briefly entertains the idea that this has been a hallucination from the second he saw Hi in the bathroom, but dismisses it quickly. This is way too detailed. Trying to shake his anxiety, he follows Hi out of the gates.

 

\--

 

“He mentioned Lucy? And getting caught?” Hiram sips a smoothie, watching Shelton across the table. “Why are we always neck deep in a conspiracy?” 

 

Shelton hasn’t even  _ mentioned  _ the rewinding time. 

 

Hi reaches across the table for one of Shelton’s chips, and Shelton swipes his hand away. “Get your own, Hiram. You dragged me out here!”

 

“I had a traumatic experience! I need food to sustain me.”

 

“I was scared too. Then I saved you. I’m eating the chips.”

 

An idea crosses his mind, and he rewinds to a few moments before. Before Hi can do anything, he pulls his chips across the table, and shakes his head at him. “Not for you!” he teases. 

 

Hi raises an eyebrow. “Okay, super Shelton, you a mind reader too now?”

 

“Something like that. Max did something to Sara too. Maybe. Probably.”

 

“Always knew he was trouble. He’s freaky looking.” Hi checks his watch. “We missed class, but what’s new? We’ll join the people heading out then head home.”

 

“They probably noticed we were missing. Paugh would have wanted to ask us about what happened earlier.” Shelton checks his phone. The Virals group chat has blown up with messages.

 

**Tor: they’ve been calling you two (and max watson?) to the office for the last 20 minutes. Where are you?**

**Ben: what did you nerds do?**

**Tor: you didn’t show up to class and max has disappeared seriously what’s going on?**

**Tor: answer your damn phones guys people are asking me where you are**

**Ben: on a free period, do you need to be picked up?**

**Tor: can you please reply**

**Ben: I know you have your phone on constantly Hi stop messing about.**

**Shelton: V sorry. something came up**

**Ben: SOMETHING CAME UP.**

**Ben: WHAT ARE YOU DOING?**

**Hi: aw you were worried**

**Ben: I don’t trust you to stay out of trouble for a minute.**

**Hi: lol fair enough**

**Tor: What’s up with you two today?**

**Shelton: sorry sorry D:**

**Ben: You’re fine Shelton**

**Ben: Hiram I’m coming for you**

**Hi: wow**

 

Scrolling through the messages, he can see that Jason and Ella have texted a few times. Oops. 

 

Hi sighs. “We’re done for. Especially me, if they’ve called my mom. She’ll have swum to the school if she knows I even saw a gun.”

 

“So we better get back to school, genius. The world knows we skipped class, apparently.”

 

Shelton scoops up his rucksack and starts to head back in the direction of the school. He doesn’t think he can rewind further than a few minutes based on the intense head pains, or he would make sure they’d made it back before they were missed. 

 

Too late now. They’re going to have a very real storm to face.

 

\--

 

They make it back just as everyone else is leaving school. Tory will be a few minutes later, Shelton remembers, she has to talk to her soccer coach about something. As people stream past them, Shelton notices that most of them are giving him curious looks. They must have all heard the tannoy. Hi winks at a few of them. Shelton offers an awkward shrug. 

 

“We should head off.” Hi peers worriedly around the wall as the crowds drift away. “If the principal sees us, we’ll have to do our statements now and we’ll never catch the boat back. I don’t want to get hell from Tom as well as mom.”

 

Shelton is about to agree before someone collides with him. He opens his mouth to apologise, but before he can say anything, he’s pushed to the ground. “Hey!” Hi protests, somewhere in the background. All of Shelton’s attention is focused on Max, standing over him, looking furious. 

 

“I know you were in the bathroom earlier! I saw you leave with him, and I know you pulled the fire alarm!” Hi tries to grab Max, but is pushed away. Shelton looks around desperately, and sees a familiar car racing towards them. “You assholes told a teacher!”

 

“Hi, Shelton! Get in!” Madison is leaning out of the passenger seat, eyes wide. Hi bolts for the door, and Shelton stumbles to his feet, back aching. Max is still yelling, but Jason pulls the car away before he can get anywhere near them. He collapses into the soft seat, trying to stop the shaking and his racing heart. Hi leans his head against the window, for once having nothing to say. 

 

“What the hell was that about?” Jason isn’t facing them, but anger and worry lace his voice. “Why’s Max after you?”

 

“We intimidate him,” Hi says. “I reckon he thinks his manliness is threatened.”

 

Madison snorts. “Sure thing, Hiram. But Max dated Ashley for a bit, so I know him pretty well. I really don’t think his manliness is threatened.”

 

“I thought you lot were done keeping secrets,” Jason says, and Hi and Shelton exchange a look. “What’s going on?”

 

“Uh-” Shelton starts, with absolutely no idea how the sentence is going to finish. Before he can say anything, Hi cuts in. 

 

“He pulled a gun on me in the bathroom.” He is speaking smoothly, in a voice that sounds almost like he’s making a joke, but Shelton has known Hi forever, and can tell that he’s badly freaked out. 

 

Madison’s mouth drops open, and Jason pulls the car onto the side of the road and turns to face them. “He did  _ what _ ?”

 

“Well, I don’t know what  _ he  _ thought he was doing, but I just wanted to empty my bladder, and he started shouting at me about Chance. I don’t have the best reputation for keeping my mouth shut, I guess.” Madison and Jason still look incredulous. 

 

“Jesus, Hi, are you okay?” Jason.

 

“I think he was doing drugs or something.” Hi conveniently doesn’t answer the question. “I walked in at a bad moment, and he recognised me from the Chance saga, and the Gamemaster saga, and I guess the twins whilst we’re at it. He probably thought I’d tell Tory. Everyone’s scared of Tory.” He’s rambling. Shelton can tell when Hi is badly shaken, and right now, he looks like he’s seen several ghosts. 

 

“Did you tell someone? This is serious!”

 

“Why do you think he was so pissed off? Mr Douglas caught us in the bathroom, I had to explain.” Shelton is surprised at how calm he sounds. Frankly, today has been an emotional rollercoaster and he’s too tired to be outwardly freaking out. Making a scene is not on the cards. “That’s why they’ve been calling us and him to the principal’s office all day.”

 

Madison sighs. “He needs help. He might be a complete asshole but there are…” She trails off, looking for the words. “...circumstances, let’s put it that way.”

 

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Hi sits up, eyes wide.

 

“It’s none of your business, Hi.” Madison says, and Shelton sees something flash in her eyes that makes him think of Tory. “I’ll talk to you about that if this whole mess escalates but I’m keeping his secrets for now.”

 

“If he messes with you again, tell me.” Jason is starting to look quite protective. “He gets away with a  _ lot _ , but trying to shoot you can’t possibly be ‘forgotten about’. I’ll drive you to the marina, are you guys likely to get in any more trouble from there?”

 

“Probably.” Madison says dryly, and Hi snickers.

 

Despite Jason’s reservations, they drop Shelton and Hi off at the marina a few minutes before Tory arrives. Either they are Oscar worthy actors, or Tom is too distracted to notice their frayed nerves. 

 

“Hey, boys. Good day?”

 

If their parents have been told about the events of the morning, Tom hasn’t got the memo. “It was alright,” Shelton replies. He doesn’t realise he’s reaching towards his earlobe before Hi grabs his hand and squeezes it. Tom raises an eyebrow, and Hi drops his hand, cheeks slightly pink. Shelton tucks his hand into his pocket and stares at his sneakers. He’s really got to drop this habit, he thinks. Though there were other ways Hi could have stopped him from betraying his anxiety. Tom turns away to check on something. He doesn’t say anything, but there’s a hint of a smile on his face.

Hi has moved now, and is staring into the water below the boat. Shelton joins him, watching their reflections wobble on the surface. “I hate the ferry,” he says idly. “We’re not even moving yet, and I feel crap.”

 

“Don’t you dare throw up on me.” Shelton warns, shifting against the cold metal bars. There’s a silence for a few seconds. “I think Tom thinks there’s something going on. With us.”

 

Hi’s reflection smiles. “I don’t think he’s the only one.”

 

“Probably because you keep grabbing me in public. You really didn’t have to do that.”

 

“Any excuse to touch you!” There’s humour in Hi’s voice now, and Shelton isn’t entirely sure why he can’t look straight at him.

 

Before he can come up with a snarky reply, Tory practically flies onto the boat, and heads straight towards them. “Right.” She has both hands on her hips, and is staring straight at them. “So when I take a  _ convenient detour  _ by Paugh’s office, your names come up in conversation.”

 

“Ah, crap.” Hi rolls his eyes. “I’m getting this talk from my mother later, Tory, spare me the previews.”

 

“Apparently you’re not. I overheard Paugh saying that Max denied everything, and there was no trace of any gun, so they can’t pursue this any further.”

 

“ _ They what?”  _ Shelton honestly can’t believe what he’s hearing.

 

“That would explain why I haven’t seen my mom’s face appear in the sky yet.” Hi looks almost relieved.

 

“Hi, shut up for a second.” Tory looks pissed. “What the hell happened? Why are they talking about guns?”

 

Hi mimes passing a microphone to Shelton. It’s his way of saying that he doesn’t want to tell the whole story again. Shelton shakes his head, and recounts the story. She looks positively ready to ask Tom to turn back the boat so she can fight Max by the end of it. Again, Shelton leaves out the minor detail that he had reversed time after Hi was shot. That’s something to keep to himself for now. 

 

“How can you say that so casually?” Tory asks, and Shelton wants to say that so much has happened in the last few hours that he can’t even process it properly, but he can’t tell her about anything else, so he just shrugs. Tory must interpret this as him being deeply traumatised or something, because she squeezes his shoulder. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

 

Shelton smiles gratefully. What would he do without his friends? “I called Ben on the way here and kinda freaked out at him,” Tory looks a little sheepish. “He’s gonna meet us at the dock.”

 

“You guys are gonna be great parents one day,” Hi says, nudging Shelton to get him to play along. “And yes, I do mean together.”

 

“Ah yes, you and your three lovely children. Shelton, Hiram, and Coop.” Shelton adopts a dreamy expression. “You will call them that, right?”

 

Tory looks a bit pink. “I don’t know if we’ll last that long, guys.”

 

Shelton thinks that’s a fair enough assumption (though he’s tried to avoid thinking about what might happen to their group) but Hi looks genuinely aghast. “Really?”

 

“I can’t believe you nearly got shot and you’re worrying about my future relationship status.”

 

Hi scoffs. “He wouldn’t have actually shot me. I doubt that thing was even loaded.”

 

Shelton fixes his eyes on the water and says nothing. If there was a pill he could take to forget the fear in Hi’s voice, or the flicker of surprise in his eyes as the gun went off, he would take it without hesitation. That’s going to haunt him for a long time, but for now, Tory and Hi are right there and he doesn’t want to scare them anymore, so he looks over and smiles at them. Tory gives him a reassuring grin, but Hi’s brow furrows for a second in concern before he smiles back. 

 

Hiram’s always been able to read him better than anyone.

 

After a minute, Hi heads inside, claiming seasickness. Shelton is left alone with Tory on the deck. He’s expecting a few minutes of their normal chat, or maybe to be asked if he’s okay again. He doesn’t expect Tory to turn to him, and say quietly, “What aren’t you telling me, Shelton?”

 

“Huh?” He replies, pretending to sound confused. Maybe he can play this off.

 

“You’re hiding something. You look really freaked out, and I can tell you’re considering saying something.”

 

“Hi just nearly got shot! It was scary!”

 

“Then why don’t I feel like he’s hiding something? Shelton. What happened?”

 

There’s no point pretending anymore. She knows he’s hiding something, but never in a million years will she guess what. So he turns to her, and says, “There is something else. I can’t tell you right now, but I promise I want to.”

 

“Shelton-”   
  
“Can you just trust me?”

 

She looks like she wants to push further, and Shelton assumes it must be the look on his face that stops her. “Okay. I trust you.” The universe really is cutting him a break right now, he’s never seen Tory drop something in his life. He’s about to thank her before she cuts in and says, “Promise you’ll tell me if you’re in trouble.”

 

_ Does this count as trouble?  _ Regardless of how complicated the situation already is, he smiles and nods. “I’m not in trouble. I just need some time to think.”

 

“Okay.” Then suddenly, she breaks out into a smile, and nudges his arm. “Good luck. With the thinking.” She even winks at him. 

 

_ What the hell? _

 

Before he has time to ponder  _ that  _ mystery, the boat docks back on Morris Island. Shelton and Tory hop off, and Hi follows a little slower (and a little greener). 

 

If the universe had been smiling on him before in letting Tory drop the subject, it is now most certainly balancing the scales. Ben is already at the dock, and he is not about to let the topic go. He greets them at the dock, gives Tory a quick kiss and says hey to Shelton and Hi. Whilst Tom is still in the vicinity, he acts like normal, chatting to them and rolling his eyes fondly at Hi’s lame attempts at humour, but there’s a tightness to his voice and he keeps his eyes fixed on them the whole time. If his dad had been less oblivious, he would absolutely have noticed. The second they’re out of earshot, Ben clenches his fists, and his eyes darken. “Right. I swear to God, I am going to kill that bastard.”

 

“Ben, relax.” Hi looks thoroughly dismayed, raising his hands placatingly. 

 

“I will not relax, Hi! You could have died!” Shelton notes that Ben’s tone has shifted from angry to worried now. “Do you not think you’ve been shot at enough?” He has a hand on Hi’s shoulder like he’s afraid to let go.

 

“Well obviously I think it’s getting old,” Hi admits, “Max Watson, though? Nah, if I do die getting shot, it’ll be the end of a blockbuster movie and I’ll say something way cooler than whatever I said back there.”

 

“Stop making jokes!” Shelton blurts out, and instantly regrets it when the others turn to look at him. He considers rewinding, but if there’s a limit on this power, he doesn’t want to waste it. “It was scary, Hiram, and you keep acting like it’s nothing.”

 

“Sorry,” Hi says softly, looking genuinely regretful. “You saved me. That was cool, Super Shelton.”

 

“That better not become a nickname.”

 

“Too late!” Hi brightens, before turning sharply away from the group and hurrying off towards his house. They’re not even that close, and Hi is never the first to leave when they walk back together. “Mom’s expecting me, I’ll talk later.”

 

Tory watches him leave. “Guess this isn’t gonna be the relaxed semester we hoped for.”

 

“Sure you’re okay, Shelton?” Ben touches his back gently, like he’s about to crumble. “You look terrible.”

 

“Tired of guns.” Shelton replies, forcing a smile. “Try asking Hi that. He’s better at acting fine.”

 

“We’ll keep an eye on him,” Tory smiles. “Both of you. We Virals look after our own.” There’s nothing more to say really, so Shelton cuts away, leaving Ben and Tory with some alone time. 

 

Home is a welcome comfort. Shelton has always loved how his house feels. Ben’s is empty more often than not, and the lights are usually off and everything neatly put away. Hi’s, with the exception of his own room, is far too neat for the bizarre colour schemes and the inspirational quotes hanging on the wall that look like they’re right out a parody. The Devers household is bright and airy but not overbearing. There are always books or papers at the table, post-it notes that they’ve left each other on the fridge, and blankets on the couch.

 

Shelton kicks his shoes off and drops them into the basket, before wandering over to the dining table, where a bright yellow note has caught his attention.

  
  


**Dad and I will be home late tonight! Dinner in the fridge, there’s enough for two of you if you want company!**

 

**Mom xxx**

 

Shelton smiles idly at the note and heads upstairs. Once he’s finally located and utilised his anxiety meds, he wastes a few hours scrolling through social media and watching videos, but he can’t focus on anything for more than a few minutes. His mind keeps drifting back to the possibility that he reversed time.

 

He needs more proof.

 

Grabbing a glass of squash from his bedside table, he heads out of his room to where the floor is tiled. He doesn’t want to leave stains if he really is going mad. Frowning, he spills the drink across the floor, then holds his hand out and with bated breath concentrates on what he wants.

 

A faint discomfort itches at the back of his head and he’s about to close his eyes when he sees the glass, filled with his drink again, vanish. When he returns to his room, it’s sat on his table like always. 

 

A slightly hysterical laugh flies out of his mouth and he instinctively raises his hand to cover it. When he removes it, there’s a smudge of red. Nosebleed. Before he can do anything, there’s a knock at the door.

 

_ “Shelton!”  _ Hi’s voice is in his head suddenly. The barriers are all down. “ _ Let me in?” _

 

_ “On my way,”  _ Shelton responds, hurrying down his stairs. As he opens the door, Hi looks like he’s about to say something, but before he can, his eyes go wide. “Woah, what happened?”

 

He’s confused for a second before he remembers his nose. “Oh! It’s fine, just a nosebleed.” Hi scrambles in his pocket and offers Shelton an old tissue. “Gross, Hi. I think I’ll stick with clean ones.” He steps aside to allow Hi in and lets him follow him to the kitchen. Whilst he grabs a tissue from the counter, Hi scans the paper Shelton’s dad had left there that morning.  “Why’d you come over?” Shelton asks, not that he minds Hi showing up at all.

 

His back is turned but he knows Hi shrugs. “I wanted to talk to you,” he says eventually. “A whole lot happened today.”

 

_ You don’t know the half of it _ , Shelton thinks to himself, turning to face Hi. Except he really wants to tell him, and right now, with Hi sitting on the table bathed in late afternoon sun and looking so worried and earnest, it’s hard to resist. “Yeah,” he says flatly, swallowing. “Max. Sara.”

 

“What’s the third thing?” Hi raises an eyebrow.

 

“Huh?”

 

“You were gonna say a third thing. What else could possibly have happened today?”

 

“Nothing! There’s hardly time for that,” Shelton replies, then nearly snorts at his own joke. It’s a joke that only he gets, but funny nonetheless. 

 

“Okaaaay.” Hi drags out the word. “Come on, we’re going for a walk.”

 

Shelton thinks about a snarky reply, but the walk sounds appealing, so he grabs his keys and walks out into the warm air. “Where are we going?”

 

“Uh….that way!” Hi points in the direction of the sunset. “Or wherever you want to go. I just don’t wanna be at home right now.”

 

“Sunset sounds good. You escaping your mom?”

 

“Always,” Hi says flatly. 

 

Shelton feels a pang of sympathy as he matches pace with him. Hi’s mother has been difficult as long as he’s been alive, but he’s never entirely certain what’s going on. Hi tends to clam up uncharacteristically when the topic comes up.  “Sorry,” he says awkwardly, because there’s nothing else to say.

 

“It’s cool. I’ll make my great escape one day.” He raises his hands in a mock shrug. “Anyway, here’s the deal. You’re not telling me something about earlier. I kinda wanna know what, given that I could’ve died and all.”

 

“Hi-”

 

“Secret for a secret. I’ll tell you something you don’t know about me.”

 

“But you talk so much!” Shelton teases. “What could I possibly not know?”

 

“Ah! You’re curious now!” Hi shoots finger guns at him, then drops to sit in the sandy grass. “I’ll start and everything. But then you’re legally bound to tell all, Shellfish.”

 

“Call me Shellfish again and the deal is off,” Shelton deadpans, sitting down next to him. Then, he takes a deep breath. If anyone will believe this story, Hi will. Also, he really is curious about Hi’s secret. “Fine. Tell me your thing.”

 

Hi looks a little apprehensive suddenly. “Okay, not gonna lie, sorta wasn’t expecting you to take me up on that.”

 

“A deal’s a deal!”

 

“Yep. You best hold onto your ears, Shelton. They’re about to hear some wild shit.”

 

“Are they? Or are you just gonna keep talking nonsense?”

 

“I was going to run away last year,” Hi says, turning to look at him.

 

“You what?” Okay, he hadn’t been expecting that.

 

“Not forever! I was always gonna come back. But I needed to get out.” He smiles, fiddling with a shoelace. “I know how dumb that sounds. How old am I?”

 

“Why?” Shelton manages.

 

“Do you ever feel like you’ve been making everything up? Like- you guys expect me to act dumb and say weird shit, so I do. Everyone knows I wear my stupid blazer inside out, so I do. I don’t even know what I’d do if I wasn’t always thinking about what I was expected to. It’s the same at home. My parents have all these ideas about trouble I’m going to get into, and I have to follow all their expectations or go completely against them. No middle ground.”

 

“I had no idea,” Shelton is stunned.

 

“You weren’t supposed to. It’s all part of my show!” He laughs a little. “I had a plan and everything for sneaking out. I was gonna stay with my gran. Somewhere no one knew me.”

 

“Wouldn’t she have called the police? Or your mom?”

 

He sighs. “She’d insist on letting me stay. She doesn’t talk to my mom anymore. If I went to her, she’d see it as me choosing her side.”

 

“You were just going to disappear,” Shelton says faintly, head spinning at the idea.

 

“I had letters for all of you. Just to make it clear I left on my own. Though my mom would probably still be convinced I was abducted.”

 

“True,” Shelton smiles a little. “But you didn’t go.”

 

“I didn’t.” Hi tilts his head up, and the sunlight illuminates him in an orange glow. “It was stupid anyway. I didn’t have any proper plans for school or eating, and if the police didn’t find me, you guys would have. It was dumb, and illogical, and-” Hi pauses to contemplate what he says next. “I don’t think I could have left you guys behind anyway. Not after everything we went through to stay together.”

 

“Too right! Like we’d just let you vanish on us!” Shelton rests a hand on his shoulder. “You can’t split up the gang!”

 

“But we will be split up,” Hi replies softly. “We’ll all split up for college and you’ll all find exciting new friends just like you and awesome careers that suit you.”

 

“And you won’t?”

 

“I don’t know what ‘just like me’ is! I don’t know what I want to do! I’m probably never gonna leave this place.” He flops down onto his back and a cloud of sand rises around him.

 

“Now you’re just being silly,” Shelton replies, but it’s affectionate. Hi’s been struggling for a while, and everyone has missed it. “Whatever you decide, I’m with you, jelly belly. You’ll be great at any job you decide on.”

 

“Thanks, Shelly. It really isn’t as bad as all that. I stayed after all! Apparently my felonies stacking up does something to change my image.”

 

Shelton laughs a bit at that. “No one knows what to make of us anymore.”

 

“That’s good.” He hops to his feet suddenly, and turns to point at Shelton. “That’s my Hallmark moment! Now I believe you owe me a secret.”

 

“Yeah,” Shelton says softly. He’s really put his foot in it now. Hoping that he can make this less weird by standing with Hi, he moves to get up, but as he stands, a sudden blinding pain blooms in his head and he collapses back into the sand. 

 

When he looks up to call to Hi, he’s gone. The orange light has been replaced by stormy skies and it’s pouring with rain. The creaking behind him alerts him to the biggest change. It’s the lighthouse, looming above him. He doesn’t get a good look before a newspaper, caught in the wind, flies into his face. The headline makes his breath catch in his throat.

 

**TORNADO SET TO DESTROY LOCAL ISLANDS**

 

The accompanying picture of Charleston is all too familiar.  _ Check the date,  _ he thinks to himself, and when he does, he almost wishes he hadn’t. 

 

It’s the upcoming Friday, and he feels a sickening certainty as he stares across the sea into the twister, that this is no nightmare.

 

Backing away, mouth open in shock, he tries desperately to wrack his scrambled brains for what the hell is going on. “Hiram!” Shelton screams into the wind. Before he can say anything else, a hand clamps down on his shoulder and he whips around in terror, only to be blinded by the sun in his eyes and Hi’s huge, terrified eyes. It’s warm again, and he crumples back into the dry sand with a gasp.

 

“Holy shit, Shelton, what’s wrong?” Hi whispers, holding him against his shoulder, rubbing his back. “Do you need to go to hospital? There’s no phone service here,  _ shit!”  _

 

The pain is seeping away slowly, so he eases himself back. “I’m fine. No hospital.”

 

“Are you sure?” Hi still looks pale. “You had that nosebleed earlier, what if something-”

 

“I think I know what it is,” Shelton breathes, and it’s now or never. “I had this- vision.”

 

“A... vision?” Hi sounds more concerned now, if anything. He definitely doesn’t sound like he’s buying it.

 

“Today has been really really weird. The same thing happened in Photography this morning! I was at the lighthouse, and there was this tornado, and it was this Friday, I saw it in the paper! Then I went to the bathroom, and you got shot and-”

 

“Shelton! I didn’t get shot! You saved me, I think you need-”

 

“No, Hiram, you did! And I reversed time and hit that fire alarm to save you. That’s how I caught up with Sara, and how I knew you were gonna take my chips.” He wants to say more, but he has no idea where to start. 

 

Hi’s face is pinched like he’s weighing everything up, trying to think of how the hell to respond. As Shelton looks at him, he notices tiny white snowflakes falling into his hair. Almost as one, they turn their heads to look up at the sky. It’s snowing. In the middle of September. “What the hell?” Hi whispers. “How can it be snowing?”

 

“Climate change?” Shelton says weakly.

 

Hi looks back at him gravely. “There’s a storm coming,” he says. “A big one. That’s the only thing I can think of.”

 

“I don’t know what’s going on!” Shelton croaks, and the utter fear in his voice must be evident because Hi turns away from the snow and holds him in his arms as he shakes with the effort of not crying. “I saw it!”

 

“It’s okay,” Hi murmurs. “We’ll figure it out. I promise you.”

 

They stay like that for a few minutes, snow falling around them, until Shelton finally feels like maybe this is a storm they can weather after all. 

**Author's Note:**

> thank you to everyone over the years (lmao) who has listened to me talk about this fic, given me ideas, or generally put up with me.
> 
> i'm on tumblr at ghostmontygreen!


End file.
